Sunday at the Post

QUOTE/STORY OF THE WEEK...

“I can't imagine a person becoming a success who doesn't give this game of life everything he's got.” -- Walter Cronkite (1916-2009)

Friday, Walter L. Cronkite Jr. passed away at the tender age of 92. He was an American icon who played tremendous role in the beginning of the information age and the flattening of the world. From 1962 to 1981, Mr. Cronkite was a nightly presence in American homes on the CBS Evening News, guiding viewers through national triumphs and tragedies, from moon walks to war, in an era when network news was a central part of most Americans’ lives.

APWalter Cronkite

"You will never meet anyone who is as warm and as much of a gentleman as Walter Cronkite. He loved music, he loved the Grateful Dead. He collected drums, including one from the drummer of the Grateful Dead. He adopted them and they adopted him; he was totally a fan. There were many sides to Walter." – Sean McManus, CBS News and Sports president

“From his earliest days, he was one of the hungriest reporters around, wildly competitive, no one was going to beat Walter Cronkite on a story, and as he grew older and more successful, the marvel of it was that he never changed, the wild fires still burned.” -- David Halberstam from “The Powers that Be”

Cronkite was the voice of America at a time when we needed comfort, needed calmness and needed to be reassured. His willingness to show his natural emotion on television as he announced the passing of President Kennedy will be the first memory that comes to mind when I think about him. When I worked at CBS Sports on the NFL Today Show in 1998, Jim Nantz gave me a tour of the Broadcast Center, and I asked him to show me the exact location where Mr. Cronkite delivered that dreadful message to all of America.

Nantz, being the great historian of all things, especially CBS, took me to the exact spot in the old newsroom. It now, or at least then, served as a cluster of cubicles near CBS Radio.

Here is a video tribute page to the man and his career.

COUNTDOWN TO THE SEASON...SIX DAYS UNTIL THE BILLS/BROWNS

“Superstars don't know how or why they do things right so easily. They are spoiled by how easy it is and impatient with those to whom it does not come easy, so they seldom make great coaches. The men who become coaches understand that most players must sweat and sacrifice for success and that the success of the team depends on the plodders as much as on the rare superstar.” -- Frank Leahy, former Notre Dame head coach

Baltimore Ravens. July 27 (rookies), July 29 (veterans)
Buffalo Bills July 25 (rookies and veterans)
Cincinnati Bengals July 30 (rookies and veterans)
Cleveland Browns July 24 (rookies), July 31 (veterans)
Denver Broncos July 30 (rookies and veterans)
Houston Texans July 26 (rookies), July 31 (veterans)
Indianapolis Colts Aug. 2 (rookies and veterans)
Jacksonville Jaguars Aug. 2 (rookies and veterans)
Kansas City Chiefs July 31 (rookies and veterans)
Miami Dolphins Aug. 1 (rookies and veterans)
New England Patriots July 26 (rookies), July 29 (veterans)
New York Jets July 27 (rookies), July 30 (veterans)
Oakland Raiders July 29 (rookies and veterans)
Pittsburgh Steelers July 31 (rookies and veterans)
San Diego Chargers July 26 (rookies), July 31 (veterans)
Tennessee Titans July 30 (rookies and veterans)
Arizona Cardinals July 29 (rookies and veterans)
Atlanta Falcons July 31 (rookies and veterans)
Carolina Panthers Aug. 2 (rookies and veterans)
Chicago Bears July 31 (rookies and veterans)
Dallas Cowboys July 29 (rookies and veterans)
Detroit Lions July 31 (rookies and veterans)
Green Bay Packers July 31 (rookies and veterans)
Minnesota Vikings July 30 (rookies and veterans)
New Orleans Saints July 30 (rookies and veterans)
New York Giants Aug. 3 (rookies and veterans)
Philadelphia Eagles July 26 (rookies), July 29 (veterans)
San Francisco 49ers July 28 (rookies), July 30 (veterans)
Seattle Seahawks July 30 (rookies), July 31 (veterans)
St. Louis Rams July 30 (rookies), July 31 (veterans)
Tampa Bay Bucs July 31 (rookies and veterans)
Washington Redskins July 29 (rookies and veterans)

THINGS I HEARD AROUND THE NFL LAST WEEK...

APPick No. 1: Matthew Stafford

1. Someone in the league told me about the upcoming labor talks between the owners and the players as they relate to rookie contracts. Did you know that the top 16 players in the draft make more money than the rest of the drafted players combined? That’s right, players 1 to 16 make more than players 17 to 256. Clearly, there needs to be a redistribution of money as it relates to rookies in the next labor agreement. A large part of that money should also find its way into the veterans’ hands.

2. The Raiders, who released sixth-round pick Stryker Sulak before he signed, will save about $93,000 of their rookie pool money for their other draft picks. It’s not often that a rookie draft pick is waived before signing a deal. When it does happen, as it did in 2002 when the Eagles had to release seventh rounder Raheem Brock, it’s due to teams’ rookie salary cap pool. No one has signed Sulak since he cleared waivers, making him a free agent but still regulated to the rookie pool if any team gives him a signing bonus.

APLeon Washington

3. Things are going to heat up this week with the Jets and running back Leon Washington. Washington does not want to hold out from camp, but he also wants to be compensated for his contributions to the team. He’s a huge part of the Jets’ offense, but like Laveranues Coles and Chris Baker last year, he feels he was promised a new deal. This needs to get resolved.

4. I hear the Ravens will be patient on bringing in veteran receivers, allowing Derrick Mason time to reconsider his decision of retiring. With Head Coach John Harbaugh due to talk to Mason sometime this week, there is still hope for him to reconsider. Replacing Mason’s 80 catches will be tough, but the Ravens like their younger wide outs and felt they had five good players in addition to Mason.

5. I would be very surprised if any of the other top-10 rookie draft picks get contracts done this week. Management council has made calls to every team in the league, giving each a layout of the labor progress as well as what to expect over the landscape of the next two years.

APMike Shanahan

6. There was a positive reaction from my NFL friends to my pick of Mike Shanahan potentially being the next coach of the Redskins if things don’t go well this year in Washington. In fact, one head coach told me that Shanahan is going to make the rounds this summer and visit as many camps as he can in order to keep up with the game. This working camp visit by Mike wouldn’t surprise me; he’s very proactive in his quest to improve his knowledge. I bet Washington is on his itinerary.

7. It will be much easier to fill this column with notes next week since most teams are back from vacations as they get ready to start the ‘09 NFL season.

VIDEOS OF THE WEEK...

Are You Going to Finish Strong?

Nick Vujicic has no arms or legs but has come to terms with his lot in life, and he delivers an inspirational speech to school kids that they will probably never forget. You must watch this video:

NICK VUJICIC VIDEO....

BOOK OF THE WEEK...

“Power Ambition Glory: The Stunning Parallels between Great Leaders of the Ancient World and Today . . . and the Lessons You Can Learn,” By Steve Forbes and John Prevas

I was watching “Morning Joe” on MSNBC, as I do every day, and Steve Forbes came in to talk about his new book. The concept of the book sounded great as Forbes talked about how he formed a writing partnership with John Prevas. The book fits perfectly into the theme of the Sunday Post, so I made the purchase.

I always wanted to learn more about great leaders of the ancient world, so reading this book was educational on two fronts: One, John Prevas makes the history of the time very exciting and informative, and two, how those situations relate to modern-day problems that leaders face.

Like all leadership books I read, I’m searching for one or two good ideas to put into my thought bank and utilize in my daily life. This book offers more than two and also provides a lesson on history.

Here is a video of Forbes talking about the book.

LEADERSHIP IMPROVEMENT IDEA...

I've been a puppet, a pauper, a pirate,
A poet, a pawn and a king.
I've been up and down and over and out
And I know one thing:
Each time I find myself, flat on my face,
I pick myself up and get back in the race.

From “That’s Life,” Frank Sinatra

Dealing with adversity is never easy for anyone. All of us have faced struggles in our careers and personal lives that have challenged our resolved, our commitment and our true character. Seneca, the Roman philosopher, once said, “Things that are hard to bear, are sweet to remember.”

But what are the best ways to deal with adversity? Like anything we do in life, there are guidelines to follow to make sure we correctly deal with the problem at hand. Here are some basic rules of dealing with adversity as the leader:

1. Always remember that no matter how good or how bad things are, they are going to get better.

2. Believe in yourself, because if you don't believe in yourself, then why should others believe in you? You cannot lose confidence.

3. Never, ever, ever give up! Churchill is right!!!

4. You only have one life, so make it the best you can possibly make it. Every day, make it a small goal to improve in one area of life -- learn one new thing.

5. Do not, under any circumstances, let everyone else talk you into doing stuff that you know you should not do. Never let ambition or money take away from your principles.

6. If you do find yourself folding under stress and are finding life a bit of a struggle, seek help from a person you trust. Do not be afraid to call a friend, to call someone for help.

7. To succeed, you need something to hold on to, something to motivate you, something to inspire you. Search for your passion, search for your love of life.

8. Be persistent and resilient. When you are tired and you feel you cannot go another step, reach deep inside and press on. Persistence will always win.

9. Success in life is not a destination, it is a journey that you define, not others.

10. Life is about Love, Inspiration, Faith and Endeavour and giving back to others.

In keeping with our Greek theme today, Sophocles' play, Philoctetes, includes a great passage that talks of dealing with struggle and adversity:

So hope for a great sea-change
On the far side of revenge.
Believe that a further shore
Is reachable from here.
Believe in miracles
And cures and healing wells.

ARTICLES YOU MIGHT HAVE MISSED THAT AREN’T WORTH MISSING...

Bill Russell was a great player and a great coach and leader. He has a unique perspective on leadership. Here’s an article that provides some insight into the rules of leadership from one of the NBA’s greatest players.

RUSSELL RULES: 11 Lessons on Leadership from the Twentieth Century's Greatest Winner, by Bill Russell

Rule One: Learning should be a daily experience and a lifetime mission. Michelangelo said, "I have offended God and mankind because my work didn't reach the quality it should have." I always believed if Michelangelo felt that way, then I would always strive for the best because anything else would not be enough.

Rule Two: Craftsmanship and quality are never accidents. In lesson three, on listening, I talked about the importance of careful language selection to get folks to listen more effectively. Well, think about replacing the word quality with craftsmanship and reintroduce it as an integral part of your brand.

Rule Three: Make craftsmanship contagious. Craftsmanship and teamwork go hand in hand; one cannot happen without the other. If others see the care and dedication that you put into your job and into winning, they will follow. Accomplishing that is a true mark of a winning leader.

One final thought. Because I have gotten so much joy from the things I have done in my life, it has sometimes been hard to think that joy itself is a leadership quality. But it is. When a leader is obviously passionate and joyful in what he or she does, that is inevitably communicated. It sets a tone, a standard in which winning is not the only thing but the most natural thing in the world.

COMMENT OF THE WEEK FROM THE POST...

"What is Ocho going to "Tweet" about? How he gets shut down play after play by the Ravens and the Steelers?  Please... D Hester will have better numbers than that guy."

From "Da Coach" on Matt Bowen's article "Eight in the box: Tweet me, Ocho"

REMEMBER WHEN...

I’ve welcomed the Twitter phase of the new technology with open arms and love meeting all the readers of our site along with many other interesting and enlightened people. One of the many things I love about Twitter is when Sirius Radio puts up its guest list saying it will have the Godfather of the NFL, Gil Brandt, on. And Godfather is the right name for Mr. Brandt. He is a true pioneer in the scouting profession, and his wealth of knowledge has been invaluable to my career.

I first met Gil when I was working at UNLV as an unpaid assistant. Gil came in as a favor to head coach Harvey Hyde to speak to the team about how to prepare for the college season. Gil’s talk featured great stories of his NFL career, as well as advice on how to act like a champion.

APGil Brandt

Three years later, I was working with Gil as a scouting assistant with the 49ers, but in a combine that had the Bills, Seahawks and Cowboys. Of course, “The Godfather” ran the combine with unique organizational skills, making sure there was no stone left unturned. He was very good at his job, always making sure he was on top of the latest technology, the latest trends in the NFL and the best coaches in both college and professional football. He worked passionately for the Cowboys.

I used to love to get him into “storytelling mode” and often tried to get him to tell me about the Ice Bowl game between the Cowboys and the Packers. Any time I could get Gil to talk about Vince Lombardi, the Packers, that game and the elements, he would always remember something new.

One of my favorite stories has Gil awakening in the early morning on Dec. 31 in Green Bay while staying in one of those hotels where the door leads right to the street. You know, the old Howard Johnson-Holiday Inn type. He hears the phone ring, and the operator informs him that the high that day is going to be minus-12. Yes, minus-12 (the game-time high was minus-13). Now, this is 1967 and there are no sideline clothing deals for the teams. You wear what you brought to the game. In Gil’s case, he didn’t have anything for his feet, so he got up and went searching for a pair of boots.

Gil finds the team’s bus driver and sees that he’s wearing a nice pair of cold-weather boots. In true Gil fashion, he asks the bus driver, “Lookit, where did you get those boots?” The driver informs Gil that he bought them at the Army Navy store downtown (remember them?), but they’re not open today. Gil then asks the driver, “What size shoe are you?” The driver tells him that he’s an 11. Gil wears a 10, but that leaves more rooms for socks to keep warm. Then Gil asks, “How much did you pay for those boots?” The driver informs Gil they were around 12 bucks, so Gil reaches into his pocket and asks if he would take a 20 for the boots. The driver then goes back and forth before finally settling on the deal and gives Gil the boots to wear on the frozen tundra of Lambeau Field.

Gil has 1,000 more stories to share like the one above, all of them very entertaining. I’ve encouraged him to write a book about his time in the NFL. He really is “The Godfather.” He has helped so many people in the NFL, and I’m very proud to be one of them -- and prouder to call Gil a friend.

STORIES TO SHARE....

The Father's Eyes

Bob Richards, the former pole-vault champion, shares a moving story about a skinny young boy who loved football with all his heart. Practice after practice, he eagerly gave everything he had. But being half the size of the other boys, he got absolutely nowhere. At all the games, this hopeful athlete sat on the bench and hardly ever played.

This teenager lived alone with his father, and the two of them had a very special relationship. Even though the son was always on the bench, his father was always in the stands cheering. He never missed a game.

This young man was still the smallest of the class when he entered high school. But his father continued to encourage him and also made it very clear that he did not have to play football if he didn't want to.

But the young man loved football and decided to hang in there He was determined to try his best at every practice and perhaps he'd get to play when he became a senior. All through high school he never missed a practice or a game but remained a bench-warmer all four years.

His faithful father was always in the stands, always with words of encouragement for him.

When the young man went to college, he decided to try out for the football team as a walk-on. Everyone was sure he could never make the cut, but he did. The coach admitted that he kept him on the roster because he always put his heart and soul into every practice and at the same time provided the other members with the spirit and hustle they badly needed.

The news that he had survived the cut thrilled him so much that he rushed to the nearest phone and called his father. His father shared his excitement and was sent season tickets for all the college games.

This persistent young athlete never missed practice during his four years at college, but he never got to play in a game. It was the end of his senior football season, and as he trotted onto the practice field shortly before the big playoff game, the coach met him with a telegram.

The young man read the telegram and he became deathly silent. Swallowing hard, he mumbled to the coach, "My father died this morning. Is it all right if I miss practice today?" The coach put his arm gently around his shoulder and said, "Take the rest of the week off, son. And don't even plan to come back to the game on Saturday."

Saturday arrived, and the game was not going well. In the third quarter, when the team was 10 points behind, a silent young man quietly slipped into the empty locker room and put on his football gear. As he ran onto the sidelines, the coach and his players were astounded to see their faithful teammate back so soon.

"Coach, please let me play. I've just got to play today," said the young man. The coach pretended not to hear him. There was no way he wanted his worst player in this close playoff game. But the young man persisted, and finally, feeling sorry for the kid, the coach gave in. "All right," he said. "You can go in."

Before long, the coach, the players and everyone in the stands could not believe their eyes. This little unknown, who had never played before, was doing everything right. The opposing team could not stop him. He ran, passed, blocked and tackled like a star. His team began to triumph. The score was soon tied. In the closing seconds of the game, the kid intercepted a pass and ran all the way for the winning touchdown.

The fans broke loose. His teammates hoisted him onto their shoulders. Such cheering you never heard. Finally, after the stands had emptied and the team had showered and left the locker room, the coach noticed that this young man was sitting quietly in the corner, all alone. The coach came to him and said, “Kid, I can't believe it. You were fantastic! Tell me what got into you? How did you do it?"

He looked at the coach, and with tears in his eyes, he said, "Well, you knew my dad died, but did you know that my dad was blind?" The young man swallowed hard and forced a smile. "Dad came to all my games, but today was the first time he could see me play, and I wanted to show him I could do it!"

Like the athlete's father, God is always there cheering for us. He's always reminding us to go on. He's even offering us His hand, for He knows what’s best and is willing to give us what we need and not simply what we want. God has never missed a single game. What a joy to know that life is meaningful if lived for the highest. Live for Him, for He's watching us in the game of life.

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